How can we improve diversity in tech?

Description

Jim Brisimitzis, General Manager of Microsoft for Startups explains how Microsoft is supporting and improving diversity in tech, in which the industry is not doing enough of.

Video transcript:

How can we improve diversity in tech?

We don’t do enough of it, in my opinion. There is a lot of female founders, there is a lot of founders who are diverse and who are plugging away and they have to work 10 to 20 times harder than folks who are not from a diverse background. There is help coming, we’ve been partnering with 500 startups recently. They have been organizing a Diversity Inclusion Summit. The first one was in Los Angeles in January and we did one in Atlanta, and then we recently just did one in New York City.

I’ve hired a fairly diverse team. At one point, 50% of my team had a diverse background and that was wonderful. The world has changed so much that having diverse talent and supporting companies for building innovation that is targeting diverse populations around the world is really the only way to go. They understand diversity because they themself are diverse. They are building products and services that speak to a fairly large population in the world.

They bring world experiences to what I think are sometimes mundane ideas. They are injecting new energy and not enough of that is happening today. While we can’t solve that problem, I think it’s really important for diverse founders to continue pushing and seeking out mentors and supporters with great organizations like 500 Startups and Microsoft and others who are making those investments. Because as that help starts to unfold and unwind there will be more opportunities. Good opportunities for them to continue growing their businesses or taking their innovations to market.